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A good toaster

This toaster was actually given to us by my partner's Mum around a year ago as she had treat herself to a new one. At the time we were using a larger 4-slice toaster which I found much too bulky so I was very pleased to receive this as it takes up a lot less room in the cupboard. We have been using the toaster pretty much everyday since it was given to us whether it be for toasting crumpets, bagels or a slice of bread and I really can't fault it.

My favourite feature is the defrost feature because due to limited cupboard space I freeze bread in big batches and I hate waiting around for it to defrost, so this feature is extremely handy. The toaster retails between £24 and £30 depending on where you buy it from which I wouldn't have paid had I bought the toaster my self as it is fairly basic other than the defrost function and the crumb tray, but having said that it is very reliable and durable and it has never malfunctioned or burnt my toast. The toaster is quite heavy and it feels well made.

The design is fairly simplistic but it still looks modern, I wouldn't describe it as looking expensive but as it is silver and black in colour it does look nice. The toaster is very easy it use and I simply plug it into the wall, turn the switch on at the wall and then place my bread inside the toaster and press down on the lever on the right hand side of the toaster. The lever always stays down and has never popped back up or being a pain to keep pressed down, this is a problem I had with the toaster we had before so it's something I appreciate! The length of the cord from the plug to the toaster is a good length which is good, we have limited kitchen worktop space so getting the toaster right next to a plug can be awkward so I like that the lead is a good length.

The toaster has an orange glow inside it while it's cooking the bread and if I hover my hand over the toaster I can feel the heat coming from it. I would estimate that it takes around a minute to cook two slices of bread, it pops up once the toast has been cooked. The toast is always cooked evenly rather than just around the edges which is a problem I've had with quite a few toasters over the years however I don't think that the toast would be crunchy enough for some people after only one minute. My partner likes his toast almost burnt so I usually have to press the level down at least three times at around a minute a time until it is to his taste. I have also found that when cooking crumpets they need a bit longer, else they don't taste cooked through.

My old toaster used to cook crumpets perfectly and right through within a very short period of time so given the price I'm surprised it is lacking the power to cook a crumpet quickly. The slots of the toaster are wide so there is no risk of bread getting stuck and becoming a fire hazard, I usually buy the thick pre-sliced bread and this as well as thick crumpets fits fine in the slots. The bread can be placed in to the toaster at any angle - upright or sideways, and I also like that there's a crumb tray and I empty this once every few days. It's very simple to remove then slot back in and it saves a lot of mess. Getting the toast out of the toaster can be slightly tricky, I have to use a tissue or something to cover my fingers then pull it out by the too part that is exposed, as the toast doesn't pop out all the way. For me personally this isn't a big disadvantage as I will just cover my fingers with something and pull it out but it is a little bit inconvenient.

All in all I like this toaster but it is a bit annoying that I have to keep re-cooking the toast to get it as crispy and cooked as my partner likes it. Also, it would be more practical for the toast to pop all the way out once cooked to avoid potentially burning my fingers when trying to remove it from the toaster. Other than that, I can't fault it, although I do think it is a little bit over-priced. The defrost function is a huge advantage and my overall rating is 4 out of 5 stars. Recommended.

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simple to use and works every time

When setting up home a toaster is an essential piece of kit that most people use on a daily basis so you want one thats reliable and does what its supposed too. I also wanted one that looks good and is easy to use. As it was just me and my partner we were looking for a two slice toaster as its all we needed. With it sleek black gloss finish and stainless steel detail we went for the Russell Hobbs 14361.

I bought this 4 years ago from house of fraser home department and paid around £35 for it which I thought was a reasonable price for a toaster, not mega expensive. Now its available at Argos for £29.99 so a similar price and still a good one.The main body of the toaster is black and stainless steel with the sides being black and the two ends and top in stainless steel. The black side panels have the russell hobbs brand printed in small print at the bottom. The toaster isn't over run with tonnes of buttons doing 101 weird and wonderful things, there is simply a dial, two buttons and the plunger on the side. The dial allows to easily change the length of time that your toast cooks for by turning it to the required number. One of the buttons allows you to cancel cooking part way through which comes in real handy I use it alot. The other button enables the defrost feature which if I'm honest is something I've never had to use so I wouldn't miss it if it wasn't there! The plunger pushes down and locks down easily and quickly and also allows you to push it up to higher your toast when retrieving it from the toaster which works really well for smaller items such as crumpets; you can get them out without toasting your fingers at the same time!

On the bottom there is an easily removeable crumb tray which slides out for easy cleaning and to be able to get rid of the inevitable build of bread crumbs.The slots for the toaster claim to be extra wide which I'd agree with as its easy to toast wider items such as bagels and teacakes without them getting stuck or burnt.

There a few negatives I have found when using the toaster; firstly the cord is really short so you have to place it near a plug socket on your kitchen top. I would of liked it to have a longer cord.Also you have to remember to put the bread in long ways or the toaster won't toast the top section of your bread which can be quite annoying. But if you remember to put it in length ways you should have no issues. These are both only mild negatives they've not been enough to make me get rid of the toaster or swap it.

I have been using this now for 4 years nearly every day and its still going strong. It still toasts like it did the day we bought it and have never had any issues with it breaking or not working.Overall its a great little toaster. It has all the features you need in a toaster and is totally reliable. 4 out of 5 stars.

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Simple, reliable toaster

The Russell Hobbs Classic polished 14361 toaster is a sleek black toaster with two slices, it is stainless steel and apparently a newer version of the 'classic' toaster.

The toaster is exactly what we wanted, a classy reliable toaster that was low maintenance, easy to use, good value and looked good.

The toaster looks good, it is mainly black with silver stainless steel sides, it isn't covered in logos or little buttons, simply the toaster slide drawer and a couple of buttons on the side, which include a superb browning control dial. It is fairly small taking up around 40cm of space and weighing around 2kg, it doesn't need any assembling, although does come with a small, simple instruction booklet.

The toaster takes around 3 minutes to cook your toast to your required level, but unlike some toasters we've had, it consistently produces toast the same, so test it from very well toasted to lightly toasted and when you know what you like it will always make it the same way. It does take an extra 20 seconds to toast from frozen but the time is fine with us and allows us time to boil the kettle and scramble some eggs.

The dials are easy to use the browning dial simply needs turning to your preferred level, there aren't many other options, but as we wanted a toaster rather than an I-Pad, I'm not really sure what else you might want from a toaster. There is a high lift function, which I would strongly recommend you use as you could burn your fingers simply grabbing the toast if you don't use this. There is a crumb tray to clean regularly and clear unwanted dirt and crumbs, it slides out easily enough with minimal fuss and only spills a few crumbs unlike some previous toasters we've had.

The toaster looks good and is reliable without being overwhelming it also fits wider self cut slices and buns if you want to do them for burgers, the fact that it can toast different breads is very much in its favour, as we like to make our own bread and toast it, which isn't always possible with some flashier less useful alternatives.

The toaster comes with a 1 year guarantee and we bought it in Tesco on sale for £18.99, it is currently around £25 on Amazon and more expensive from other retailers, I would state this is simple, easy to use and does its job, nothing more nothing less, if that is what you want from a toaster (As we did), it is perfect for you.

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Good mid-range toaster

We ended up buying this toaster, which was slightly more than our budget, for two reasons: the name, and the colour(to match our kitchen-yes there doesnt seem to be too many black toasters around!). I must admit I am very impressed with this toaster. Its not flash, or isnt over complicated by any gimmicks, its simply a toaster which does its job very well. It has different levels for how you like your bread toasted, and it toasts pretty fast. It has a safety feature which doesnt allow you to put the bread in unless its turned on-so you cant forget its in there. Its so simple to use, all you need to do is pop the bread in, and press the button. One downfall i have fund on this is that after bout 6 moths use, the toaser has started to unevenly toast our bread, so one side tends to get more toasted(and even burnt sometimes)more than the other. Overall I have found this product to eb very good, nd although it tends to toast unevenly sometimes, is very reliable to others Ive had, and it looks very stylish in the kitchen.

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Product Details

The Russell Hobbs Classic Black 14361 Toaster has a simple yet classic design that will be equally at home in a modern or contemporary kitchen / This 2 Slice Toaster features wide long slots with centring guides a carriage travel lever with extra lift variable browning control and a removable crumb tray / / Short name: Russell Hobbs 14361